PRESS CONTACT
Luke Perkins, Manager of Communications and Public Relations 
303-866-3670 | luke.perkins@state.co.us 

Native American Heritage Month Resources Available Through History Colorado:
History Colorado sites across the state host exhibitions that highlight Native American Heritage and stories of Indigenous persistence. Created in close consultation and collaboration with Native American Tribes, these exhibitions share the history and living cultures of Tribes that call what is now Colorado home including:

• The Ute Indian Museum in Montrose, which connects the historic and contemporary lives and culture of the Ute peoples, showing their deep traditions of adaptation and persistence through stunning exhibitions, a breathtaking Ute Ethnobotany Garden, and the Naturescape Playground
• Fort Garland Museum & Cultural Center, located at the foot of Mount Blanca in the San Luis Valley, has a number of exhibitions focused on Native American History and living culture such as

  • Unsilenced: Indigenous Enslavement in Southern Colorado by jetsonorama, which brings to light the realities of Indigenous slavery in the American West 

  • Ute Knowledge, which highlights how the Ute peoples have always used science, technology, engineering and math to survive and thrive in the Rocky Mountains

  • And its newest exhibition The Unquiet Utes, which shares the story of the “Absentee Utes” who traveled through Wyoming, South Dakota, and Utah in the early 1900s and discusses the Utes’ frustrations with U.S. government land policy, and other reasons for their journey

• Trinidad History Museum’s Borderlands of Southern Colorado: The Santa Fe Trail exhibition, which traces the long history of trade and travel along North America’s first “superhighway” from its early use as trail systems for Indigenous Nations all the way to the transfer of territory and the shifting of borders that can still be seen on the land today
• The Ute Tribal Paths online exhibition that explores the history and contemporary culture of Colorado’s longest continuous inhabitants

In addition to the exhibitions and installations at History Colorado community museums, the History Colorado Center hosts the following exhibitions that center Indigenous perspectives:

• The Sand Creek Massacre: The Betrayal that Changed Cheyenne and Arapaho People Forever recounts the deadliest day in Colorado history and spotlights the living culture of the Cheyenne and Arapaho people, two separate Tribes with distinct histories that were bound together forever after the tragedy at Sand Creek
• Written on the Land: Ute Voices, Ute History is told from the perspectives and in the voices of today’s Ute people. Featuring more than 200 artifacts from History Colorado’s world-class collection, this exhibition was created in consultation with the Southern Ute Indian Tribe, Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, and Ute Indian Tribe of the Uintah and Ouray Reservation, who provided insights on every step of the design process
• Mesa Verde in Living West journeys into the culture of the ancestral Puebloans and the deep relationship they had with the environment of the Mesa Verde region in Southwest Colorado
• Convergence: Bent’s Fort, 1833–1849 in Colorado Stories explores trade between Plains Indian tribes – of which the Cheyenne, Kiowa, Arapaho, and Comanche were the most prominent – Hispanos, and Euro-Americans along the Santa Fe Trail in the 19th-century

Beyond its exhibitions, History Colorado has several webpages, projects, publications, and podcast episodes that explore the living culture and history of the Indigenous people of the Centennial State. Here’s an overview of some of those materials:

• The Native American History & Heritage webpage documents and shares the living history of Indigenous peoples who originally inhabited what is now Colorado and links to resources and experiences that are created and curated in partnership with Tribal governments, and are offered statewide and year round
• Created from more than 20years of collaboration between the three Ute Indian tribes, scientists, the U.S. National Science Foundation, and History Colorado museums, the Ute STEM Project explores the integration of Western science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) and Ute traditional ecological knowledge
• History Colorado’s Publications department regularly publishes original content including articles in The Colorado Magazine such as “All the Camp was Weeping”, “A Lasting Disgrace”, “Understanding Amache”, “The Sand Creek Massacre Syllabus”, “Collective Loss, Collaborative Recovery”, and “Vision and Visibility”
• History Colorado’s critically acclaimed podcast Lost Highways: Dispatches from the Shadows of the Rocky Mountains has several episodes that explore Indigenous history including: “Slavery in the South(west)”, “Oral Histories Of The Sand Creek Massacre From The Cheyenne And Arapaho Tribes Located In Oklahoma”, “Mesa Verde of the Mysteries”, “A Wild Horse Isn't Just A Horse, Of Course”, “Spirits of Place: The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act and its Legacy”, and “Mascots, Mask Off”
• The Federal Indian Boarding School History webpage provides resources that explore various aspects of the more than 250 year history of the United States using education to forcefully assimilate Native children and deny them access to their heritage, culture, and families

New Attractions Coming in November:
New Exhibition – The 90s: Last Decade Before the Future | Denver, CO
History Colorado Center | Opens November 22
We live in the future. A future created in the 1990s. On November 22, the History Colorado Center welcomes guests on an exploration of the technological revolutions, landmark moments, and rapid social, cultural, economic, and political changes that planted the seeds for the 21st century and created our modern world in: The 90s: Last Decade Before the Future.

A remarkable collection of objects pulled from History Colorado’s archives, and loaned from museums and libraries across the nation, The 90s: Last Decade Before the Future traces the multitude of watershed events, and innovations, and shows visitors something which they intuitively knew but perhaps couldn’t quantify: the 90s changed everything.

New Exhibition – Where is Denver’s Chinatown? Stories Remembered, Reclaimed, Reimagined | Denver, CO
History Colorado Center | Now on View!
Where is Denver’s Chinatown? Stories Remembered, Reclaimed, Reimagined, invites visitors to uncover the history of Denver’s Chinatown, discover what happened to it, and help imagine what it might become. Created in collaboration with Colorado Asian Pacific United (CAPU) and the University of Colorado Denver’s College of Architecture and Planning, Where is Denver’s Chinatown? Stories Remembered, Reclaimed, Reimagined shares this undertold history through personal family photographs and objects, artifacts from the museum collection, a portrayal of a typical home, and artistic reimaginings of the neighborhood.

New Exhibition – Aultman Studio: Portraits of Trinidad | Trinidad, CO
Trinidad History Museum |  Open until December 29
Aultman Studio: Portraits of Trinidad is a “then and now” style exhibition, now on display at the Trinidad History Museum which showcases residents of Trinidad through historical portraits taken by Oliver E. Aultman, owner of the historical Aultman Photography Studio, alongside modern community portraits by artist Daryl Oh. Inspired by Aultman, Oh continues to document the diversity and uniqueness of southern Colorado through portraits and captures the lives and personalities of Trinidad residents in the modern day.

New Exhibition – ¡Viva La Causa! Long Live the Cause!: The Art of Change | Denver, CO
History Colorado Center | Now on View!
¡Viva La Causa! Long Live the Cause!: The Art of Change highlights the intersections of art and activism and is now on display at the History Colorado Center. Using artwork created at the peak of two social justice movements – the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s and ʼ70s and the Black Lives Matter movement in the early 2020s – ¡Viva La Causa! Long Live the Cause!: The Art of Change explores themes of identity, equality, and courage in the face of injustices. 

Previously on display at the Fort Garland Museum & Cultural Center and the El Pueblo History Museum, ¡Viva La Causa! Long Live the Cause!: The Art of Change includes more than two dozen pieces of art – spanning multiple mediums and materials – and features bold declarations, provocative imagery, and striking narratives. The exhibition is funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.

New Exhibition – The Dry: Black Women's Legacy in a Farming Community | Pueblo, CO
El Pueblo History Museum | Now on View!
The Dry: Black Women’s Legacy in a Farming Community, recounts a story of Black agricultural excellence through the little known history of The Dry, a predominantly Black farming community in southeast Colorado, as well as the legacy of the powerful women who built and sustained this close-knit community. 

The Dry: Black Women’s Legacy in a Farming Community will be on display at the El Pueblo History Museum through March 28 and is included with general admission to the museum.

Winter Holiday Trains | Georgetown, CO
Georgetown Loop Railroad | November 8, 2024, – January 5, 2025
The Georgetown Loop Railroad is happy to announce its Winter Holiday Trains are running from November 8, 2024 – January 5, 2025. Located forty-five miles west of Denver, the Georgetown Loop Railroad is one of Colorado’s most authentic living history experiences which offers daily train rides through scenic and snowy vistas on Santa’s Rocky Mountain Adventure, as well as evening journeys in Santa’s Lighted Forest featuring more than 300,000 holiday lights. Tickets sell out quickly so be sure to reserve yours now!

Holiday Teas at the Center for Colorado Women’s History | Denver, CO
Center for Colorado Women’s History | November 30 and December 5, 7, 12, 14, 19, and 21 at 10:30 AM and 1:30 PM
Tickets ($17-40) are limited, so purchase yours now!
Celebrate the holiday season with your loved ones and a cozy cup of tea at the Center for Colorado Women's History during its beloved Holiday Teas. Featuring a docent-led tour, the signature Lady Evans black tea ,and a variety of savory and sweet snacks provided by local and woman-led business, Miss Peabody’s Southern Tea Cakes, these Holiday Teas are the perfect opportunity to see the Center for Colorado Women's History adorned for the holiday season. 

Holiday Teas at the Center for Colorado Women’s History are available on select Thursdays and Saturdays during November and December. Guests can choose either the 10:30 AM to 12:30 PM tea event or the 12:30 to 2:30 PM tea event when purchasing tickets. Some dietary restrictions can be accommodated at Holiday Teas with advanced notice. Please email CCWH@state.co.us at least seven days in advance of your tea event to request dietary alternatives.

November Events:
Trinidad History Museum Coffee & Conversation | Trinidad, CO
Trinidad History Museum | November 1, 8 AM to 10 AM
Start the first Friday of the month with free coffee and tea! Held in Trinidad’s own Bloom Mansion, Coffee & Conversation provides space for community gatherings. Join us, mingle with neighbors, and meet your museum team! We look forward to seeing you!

Downtown Golden Walking Tour | Golden, CO
Golden Welcome Center | November 1, 1 PM to 3 PM
Tickets ($30-40) and additional information available here.
Back in the 1860s, some of the big names in the territory thought that Golden should be the capital, and for a while, it took the title from Denver. While there may have been some grumbling when Denver took it back, the folks in Golden today are probably happy not to be the capital, as this has allowed them to maintain a lively place with a relatively small-town feel. Join History Colorado’s Tours & Treks for a walk around downtown Golden, with art, architecture, history, geology and even a dose of government, all under the ever-pervasive aroma of Coors, hunkered down on the landscape nearby.

Paint Night @ the Bloom | Trinidad, CO
Trinidad History Museum | November 1, 6:30 PM to 8 PM
Tickets ($30) and additional information available here.
Join the staff at the Trinidad History Museum in the Bloom Mansion during Trinidad’s First Friday Art Walk for a guided paint class taught by local artist Risa Phelps. Tickets for this event are $30/person, which includes all supplies needed! Light refreshments will be provided, but outside beverages and food are welcome. Reservations are required. To reserve your space purchase a ticket online or contact Millie Duren at emily.duren@state.co.us or 719-846-7217.

Día de los Muertos Community Gathering | Fort Garland, CO
Fort Garland Museum & Cultural Center | November 2, 11 AM to 2:30 PM
Please join us at the Fort Garland Museum & Cultural Center for a community gathering in remembrance, honor, and celebration of the lives of our loved ones who have passed on. This free community celebration will include a shared meal, short presentation on the history and symbolism of this historical holiday, craft activities, and a dance performance by the San Luis Valley’s very own Ballet Folklorico del Valle.

Dia de los Muertos | Pueblo, CO
El Pueblo History Museum | November 2, 1 to 4 PM
El Pueblo History Museum will be hosting its annual Dia de los Muertos event on Saturday, November 2 from 1 PM to 4 PM. Join us in a long-practiced tradition of Indigenous and Mexican communities that honors loved ones who have passed on by sharing stories, poems, and photos of those departed. This free community event features light refreshments, sugar skull decorating, live performances, and other traditional activities.

Museum of Memory- Whittier Neighborhood | Denver, CO
Ford-Warren Branch Library | November 2, 1:30 PM to 4 PM
History Colorado Museum of Memory - Whittier Neighborhood invites community members to share their stories. We will scan photographs into our collection and schedule oral history recordings to be added into our collection, and discuss plans for conducting a future walking or bus tour through the neighborhood so we can review the history of the parks, churches, schools, and other buildings. The date for the walking or bus tour has not been decided yet, but we ask for your input and thoughts about sharing this history.

Night at the Museums | Denver, CO
History Colorado Center and Center for Colorado Women’s History | November 2, 5 PM to 10 PM
Join the History Colorado Center and the Center for Colorado Women’s History for Night at the Museums on Saturday, November 2, from 5 PM to 10 PM. This late-night cultural extravaganza offers free admission to History Colorado’s museums and many others in the Mile High City. Presented in collaboration with Visit Denver as part of Denver Arts Week, Night at the Museums is the perfect chance to take a time-traveling adventure into Colorado's past, present, and future with History Colorado.

Meditation to Start Your Week with Urban Sanctuary | Denver, CO
Center for Colorado Women’s History | November 3 & 17, 11:30 AM to 12:30 PM
The Center for Colorado Women’s History invites you to an enriching meditation offered in partnership with Urban Sanctuary, Denver’s first Black women-run wellness studio located in the historic Five Points neighborhood. This event includes an empowering guided 30-minute meditation in the historic house by practiced Urban Sanctuary facilitators to help you start your week with intention. Afterwards, guests are encouraged to enjoy cups of our revitalizing museum signature Lady Lavender tea with citrus, vanilla, and bergamot. 

Tickets are available on a “pay what you can” basis for the November 3 and November 17 sessions.

Colcha Embroidery Workshop | Fort Garland, CO
Fort Garland Museum & Cultural Center | November 9, 1 PM to 4 PM
Learn the art of colcha embroidery from talented San Luis Valley colcheras at the Fort Garland Museum & Cultural Center on Saturday, November 9. The cost to register is $20 (all materials included). Space is limited, so visit the Museum Gift Shop or reach out to (719) 379-3512 to reserve your spot. 

Togetherness Tea with Convivio Café  | Denver, CO
Center for Colorado Women’s History | November 9, 1:30 PM to 3:30 PM
Tickets ($17-40) and additional information available here.
Join Center for Colorado Women’s History for a special tea event presented in collaboration with Convivio Café, a women-owned, Guatemalan-inspired, bilingual café located in Northside Denver. This tea event will feature Convivio’s own antojitos, té, and postres (snacks, tea, and pastries) designed by owners Kristin and Vivi in celebration of the diversity of Denver.

How-To: Caring for Military Collections | Denver, CO
History Colorado Center | November 12,12 PM to 1 PM
Tickets ($3-5) and additional information available here.
Do you have military uniforms at home that need preserving? Join Anschutz Military Collections Specialist, Sydney Mauck, to learn more about caring for heirloom uniform collections. Topics include storage environment, materials for long-term storage, and preservation techniques that can be practiced at home to help preserve beloved uniforms for the future.

Museum Basics Series | Online
Online | November 13, 5 PM to 7 PM
Tickets ($25-$325) and additional information available here
The next class in the Museums Basic series will cover working with Archival paper collections.Ticketing options for the 2024 Museum Basics Series include discounted annual passes for students, Tribal citizens, individuals, and institutions. For any questions or additional information, please contact Mark Nelson at HC_Museumbasics@state.co.us or visit the event listing here.

Vecinos Community Coffee | Fort Garland, CO
Fort Garland Museum & Cultural Center | November 14 , 11 AM to 1 PM
Fort Garland Museum & Cultural Center invites you to join them for warm beverages, good platica, and conversation with neighbors. This is a free event to provide space for community sharing and gathering. This event is located in the Mess Hall at Fort Garland Museum with parking and an entrance available at the rear of the building.

The Dry: A Legacy of Black Agricultural Excellence | Pueblo, CO
El Pueblo History Museum | November 14, 5 PM to 7 PM
El Pueblo History Museum invites you to learn about a Black farming community in eastern Colorado and the two sisters who had a dream to live free of discrimination in Colorado with the help of an expanded homesteading act in the early 1900s. One of the last descendents of the Dry, Alice McDonald, will share the legacy of The Dry and her memories of the women who lived out their dream. 

Honoring Clara Brown: Film Screening and Discussion | Denver, CO
History Colorado Center | November 15, 6 PM to 8:30 PM
Join History Colorado’s Blaxplanation team for a screening of a multi-award-winning movie, Gabriel’s Daughter: The Life and Legacy of Clara Brown. Then stay for a post-film discussion with Lori Brown Mirabal, Co-Producer who sang the leading role at the historic Central City Opera House, and Sharon Shepard-Levine, the film’s Director/Co-Producer.This event is free and open to the public but RSVP is required.

Women’s History Symposium | Denver, CO
History Colorado Center | November 16, 8:30 AM to 5:30 PM
Tickets ($35-40) and additional information available here.
Season four of Bold Women. Change History. concludes on November 16 with the annual Women’s History Symposium. This all-day symposium gathers scholars, researchers, and individuals from all walks of life who explore how women’s history is found in unexpected places and through non-traditional techniques. This year’s focus is how women have expressed their agency throughout Colorado’s history and features multiple panel discussions, presentations, and a keynote by award-winning artist Chloé Duplessis.

Rocky Mountain Map Society presents "Willful Wildlife: Animals in Persuasive Maps" | Denver, CO
History Colorado Center | November 19, 10 AM to 12 PM
Join Rocky Mountain Map Society for a discussion with Chris W. Lane on the persuasive ways in which maps influence opinion or make a point rather than simply presenting objective geographic information. Known as persuasive maps, such cartographical creations use various images to communicate various messages to map readers. One of the best ways to encode a message in a map is to use images of attention-catching animals. This lecture will explore how animals have been used on persuasive maps from the seventeenth century to the modern era in many clever, dramatic, and humorous ways. This event is free and open to the public but RSVP is required.

Rosenberry Lecture: “That’s Why They Saved the Bricks: A History of Villa Italia Mall” | Denver, CO
History Colorado Center | November 20, 1 PM to 2 PM & 7 PM to 8 PM
Exhibition Developer and Historian Jeremy Morton will take an in-depth look at the history of Villa Italia Mall and explore how it was much more than just a place to shop in the communities of Lakewood and West Denver. In this engaging and entertaining lecture, Morton will discuss the unique history of Villa Italia and how malls became integral to the social fabric of American cities. Morton will also engage with larger themes related to mall culture and nostalgia while showing how communal gathering places can play a significant role in shaping our personal identities.

Tickets ($5-15) are available for both the 1 PM and 7 PM talks. 

Family Volunteer Day | Denver, CO
History Colorado Center | November 23, 10 AM to 12 PM
Please join History Colorado Center and Kramerica Gives for Family Volunteer Day on Saturday, November 23 for a day of giving. Family Volunteer Day is a global day of service celebrating the power of families who work together to support their communities and neighborhoods and is a great way to start off the holidays while benefiting your community and having fun! All participants will receive free access to the museum, which has amazing exhibitions including Owl Club of Denver: Legacies of Excellence, Borderlands of Southern Colorado, Written on the Land, De la Tierra: Reflections of Place in the Upper Río Grande, and more!

Family Volunteer Day | Trinidad , CO
Trinidad History Museum| November 23, 1 PM to 3 PM
Tickets ($10-15) and additional information available here.
Celebrate the season at Trinidad History Museum’s November Harvest-Time Tea Party in the Bloom Mansion on Saturday, November 23 at 1 PM. We will be serving teas from the Trinidad Tea Company and light tea foods. Reservations are required; purchase a ticket online or contact Millie at emily.duren@state.co.us or 719-846-7217 to reserve space. 

PAAC Historical Archaeology Workshop | Denver, CO
History Colorado Center | November 23 & 24, 10 AM to 4 PM
Tickets ($15 per day) and additional information available here.
The Program for Avocational Archaeological Certification (PAAC) is offering a two-day Historical Archaeology Workshop at the History Colorado Center. This weekend workshop is taught by a leading expert, Colorado State Archaeologist Dr. Holly K. Norton, and provides an opportunity to gain valuable insights into the field of historical archaeology. This two-day workshop is ideal for history and archaeology enthusiasts, students and lifelong learners in the field, and anyone with a passion for the past. No prior experience is required. Participants are encouraged to attend both days of the workshop. If you can attend only one day, Day 1 is recommended. Please contact hc_publicarchaeology@state.co.us if you would like to attend only Day 2.

About History Colorado
History Colorado is a division of the Colorado Department of Higher Education and a 501(c)3 non-profit that has served more than 75,000 students and 500,000 people in Colorado each year. It is a 145-year-old institution that operates eleven museums and historic sites, a free public research center, the Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation which provides technical assistance, educational opportunities, and other access to archaeology and historic preservation, and the History Colorado State Historical Fund (SHF), which is one of the nation’s largest state funded preservation programs of its kind. More than 70% of SHF grants are allocated in rural areas of the state. Additionally, the offices of the State Archaeologist and the State Historic Preservation Officer are part of History Colorado. 

History Colorado’s mission is to create a better future for Colorado by inspiring wonder in our past. We serve as the state’s memory, preserving and sharing the places, stories, and material culture of Colorado through educational programs, historic preservation grants, collecting, outreach to Colorado communities, the History Colorado Center and Stephen H. Hart Research Center in Denver, and 10 other museums and historic attractions statewide. History Colorado is one of only six Smithsonian Affiliates in Colorado. Visit HistoryColorado.org, or call 303-HISTORY, for more information. #HistoryColorado